Steal My Lady's Heart
by Cakedecorator
Summary: Adrien Agreste, the notorious school rebel, has a problem. While he's known for being popular with girls due to his "delinquent" image, he can't speak clearly around his crush, Marinette Dupain-Cheng! But once he gets wind of the school talent show, he plans to throw his hat into the ring to win over Marinette and steal her heart! Bad Boy Adrien, No Miraculous AU. Rated T


**Here's another "Bad Boy Adrien" one-shot fic! Adrien is the school rebel, from his personality all the way down to his personal style. But those who know him well enough know that it's all bluff. Especially since he's already lost his heart… To Marinette! No but Nino one knows why he's smitten with her. And now it's his goal to win her over… Question is, how?**

 **Song included: "Steal Your Heart" by Ross Lynch.**

* * *

A school bell screeched out as everyone at lycée was walking in, out and around the halls of the building.

In the courtyard of the building, throngs of girls were giggling and squealing like a bunch of insane fans at a Jagged Stone concert. They were all waiting for a particular boy to show up.

"Oh, I hope he rides in on his bike! It'd be SO sexy if he did" "Why wouldn't he? He'd be a total wimp if he didn't!" "A popular model for Gabriel AND one of the most desirable boys in school?! He's got it ALL!"

As if on cue, the roar of a motorcycle engine came out from the gates, and then the girls got even more excited at the sound.

They all cleared away from the gate near the parking lot. Riding in on a green sports bike was a boy their age, wearing a black and green motorcycle helmet, wearing matching jacket, armor, and boots, including green gloves.

He slowed the bike to a complete spot in a student parking space. He took the key out of the ignition, put the kickstand on, and dismounted his bike. All the girls crowded around him, and then he took off his helmet. He was revealed to be a blonde with green eyes and a slight tan to his skin.

Once he looked at the girls, he gave them a cocky smile and they all squealed and swooned at the sight of him.

"KYAAA! ADRIEEEEN!" The girls screamed in delight.

He gave the crowd a smirk as he put his helmet down and started to take off his gloves. He got out his backpack and he started to the school building.

"Looks Like Agreste is here and he's swooning all the girls in school _again_." "Yeah, he's _so_ annoying." "With him around, none of the girls will blink an eye at _us_." "What do they see in a delinquent like _him_?"

Once he got to his locker, he opened it. As always, there seemed to be piles of love letters from the girls, but an equal amount of hate mail from the boys. He went to work to get rid of the unnecessary stationary.

Adrien shook his head in mild amusement. He was used to hearing all of the praises from the girls and getting roasted by the boys and getting all of the mail. There were a few exceptions to these instances, though.

"Yo, Adrien!" One particular boy spoke out, approaching Adrien. He had brown skin and short brown hair, hazel eyes, glasses, and was wearing a red cap. He also was wearing a blue shirt and matching pants.

"Nino. S'up, man?" Adrien asked, as he and Nino shared a fist bump.

Nino Lahiffe and Adrien Agreste were best friends. In fact, Nino was the first friend Adrien ever made ever since he started public schooling at their collége, and they had been attached at the hip ever since.

Seeing all of the letters, Nino said, "Having to clean out your locker again?"

"Yeah. It's so annoying." Adrien said with a scoff.

Nino gave him a look that said, "I know how you really feel." Nino then looked around, and said, "Coast is clear. You can let your guard down, now."

Adrien let out a huge sigh of relief. He closed his locker door, turned to Nino, and laid against the locker.

"That's good. God, I don't know why father won't let me just… you know, be _me_." Adrien said.

"Yeah. You may have that rebel image, but you only break minor rules, and those are on your father's orders. The occasional tardy, "forgetting" your homework, sometimes cutting class, and the only time you really "skip school" is when your old man has a photoshoot for you, and those absences are always excused." Nino said, shaking his head in sympathy.

"If it were up to me, I would always be on time, always show up to class, and never forget to do any homework," Adrien said, slumping to the floor. "The only thing about this stupid "bad boy" act that isn't acting is the fact that I _like_ riding on my motorcycle. That's the only thing about my image that's legitimate."

Nino nodded, understanding exactly what Adrien meant. But then he went to change the subject.

"Class is going to start soon. I assume your dad wants you to be late for first period?" Nino asked, as he turned to leave.

"Yeah. Go on ahead. I'll catch up later." Adrien said, as he sighed.

He sat on the ground, feeling all of the tension in his body leave as if it were caught in a rip current. Truly, Adrien wanted nothing more to act like a normal teenager. Sure, he got to go to public school like anyone else, but it was the expectations his father had for him that he considered unreasonable. It made him feel like an outcast. Constantly having to act like a misbehaving teenage boy that felt like he could do anything and everything he wanted because he had a rich father was exhausting. As a matter of fact, it was because Adrien misbehaved and snuck out to go to collége that his father insisted on putting on the whole "bad boy" act to begin with.

Adrien was not disobedient by any means. In truth, he was more the submissive, obedient type of boy because his father's expectations of him were nigh-impossible, and his father had a "my way or the highway" attitude about everything. Compounding the problem was that Adrien could _never_ tell his father what he _really_ wanted. This was because his father would always shoot him down and refuse to listen to him. It was like Adrien was more of an obscure, entry-level employee at Gabriel's company rather than his son.

The only people who knew this about Adrien were Nathalie, Gabriel's assistant, and Nino, his best friend. Even his so-called "childhood friend," Chloé Bourgeois, the daughter of the mayor, was unaware of Adrien's true colors. She had been under the impression that he had undergone a drastic about-face since starting collége and blamed it on "the insidious filth of the peasants." After that, she refused to get close to him. Probably just as well that she did. After starting school, he had learned how big of a bully she was.

Truth be told, Adrien could only be himself in his own house, but that was as lonely as being alone at school whenever Nino was not around.

But then his eyes wandered to his phone. He opened it up and gave a romantic sigh at the wallpaper on his phone… However, he noticed the time and saw that class started about ten minutes ago. Adrien stood up to go to class, making sure to be "fashionably late."

* * *

Later during break period, Adrien was leaning against the wall of the school building, holding a cigarette like a pen. The number of girls that came around him was minimal, probably because the majority of them hated the smell of tobacco.

"Oh, Adrien…" "How handsome!" "Smoking in school! How bold!" "Wow…"

Adrien kept the impression of an aloof rebel, trying not to indulge the girls by talking to them. He would never get any peace if he did speak to them.

"Hey, get away from him! Don't you know secondhand smoke is as bad as firsthand?" A voice shouted from somewhere.

The girls did not see where it came from, but they all made disappointed sounds. They all left, grumbling about how someone spoiled their fun and how they did not care about secondhand smoke.

Once the girls had left, Adrien asked aloud, "Are they gone?"

"The coast is clear, man," Nino said, as he came out from hiding. "I'm surprised nobody's clued in and figured out those are _dummy_ cigarettes."

Adrien pulled out a package from his pocket. There were three other "lit" cigarettes inside and the package said, "Fake Cigarettes." He placed the costume cigarette back in the package and then back in his pocket.

"I can't stand the stench of tobacco. I equate it to camembert," Adrien said with a scoff. "Yet another part of the act that father wants me to uphold."

"I guess everyone assumes that you wear a lot of cologne or something to cover up the smell, and no one's noticed there's no smoke coming from the tip." Nino said with a shrug.

"There are a lot of things people don't know about me, Nino," Adrien said, once again messing up his hair. "Not even Nathalie or my father know my biggest, most precious secret…"

"…Let me guess: you still have that picture as your phone and computer wallpaper?" Nino asked.

Adrien nodded, as he gave a sad sigh. Nino then looked up and noticed something up ahead. He gave a mischievous smile and said, "Hey, Adrien. Love of your life at ten o'clock."

Adrien perked up at this. He grew a goofy smile, a blush adorned his cheeks, and he stood up straight. He looked in the indicated direction, and saw two girls chatting it up with one another. They were laughing and smiling with one another, like two best friends would.

One girl was of medium height, had reddish-brown hair that went to her shoulders, with lighter-red tips. She had tan skin, hazel-green eyes, glasses, a beauty mark on her forehead, and was wearing a plaid shirt and jeans.

But it was the girl standing next to her that had Adrien's attention. She had skin that was like white rose petals with a slight peach tint, hair of black ink with blue sheen tied into twin-tails, and eyes that were as blue as the bluebell flowers that Adrien's mother loved.

Adrien gave a romantic sigh and hearts were fluttering out of his head while giving a smitten gaze to the latter girl. Her name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the daughter of the owners of the Dupain-Cheng bakery. She was an aspiring fashion designer, a fan of Adrien's father Gabriel, their class president, and one of the few girls in school who had the guts to stand up to Chloé.

But most of all, she was the object of Adrien's affections. He had been in love with her ever since collége and always looked forward to the days he could just gaze at her with all of the love he had in his heart.

"What's it going to take for me to get the guts to ask her out?" Adrien said, thinking himself pathetic for being unable to say anything to her. "She's…"

"I know, I know," Nino said. "And I quote, "She's a heaven-sent angel that graces our school. She's beautiful, talented, determined, not to mention sweeter than all of the desserts in her parents' bakery. Eros has me under his arrow's influence and I have no desire to break free." Blah, blah, blah… Honestly, it's insane how ridiculously corny you can be, man."

Adrien merely glared at Nino. He was mirroring the same body language Adrien would use when mooning over Marinette. But Nino was right: Adrien's love for Marinette was as genuine and passionate as Romeo. Adrien thought it was nearly shameful to be so in love.

"Come on, Adrien," Nino said, putting a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "You can't just clam up every time she looks in your direction. It's laughable."

"Nino, you and I _both_ know that's the pot calling the kettle noir," Adrien said, giving Nino a glare. "You have the same problems when it comes to asking out Alya!"

Nino flinched at that. Nino was also having troubles talking to the girl he liked. Alya Césaire, the head of the school blog, the deputy class president, and Marinette's best friend.

"But… Ugh, who am I kidding? You're right." Nino said.

"Look, here they come!" Adrien said, straightening up, readjusting his posture, and flipping his bad boy switch to "on."

"Hey, boys." Alya said, as the two girls came over to Nino and Adrien.

"Hey, Alya," Adrien said, before turning to Marinette. "Hey… Ma… Mari…"

His tongue tied itself up in figure eight knot, his heart was pounding, his face was as red as a ladybug, and his stomach was churning. In his mind's eye, Marinette was absolutely beautiful and mesmerizing that he could not speak.

"I… Uh… Ma…" Adrien stammered, before swallowing a lump in his throat and regaining his composure. "Hey, Marinette."

Nino breathed a sigh of relief. Adrien managed to recover, but he was still a blushing mess.

Marinette's eyes dulled a bit, before giving Adrien a neutral facial expression. She said, "Class is going to start soon. We should all be getting back."

"No need to tell me twice." Nino said, almost trying to actively get away. Adrien knew that he was using it as an excuse to get away from Alya so he could think up a plan of attack for asking her out. Adrien knew it was not easy to talk to the girl that held your heart.

"I'll meet you in class, Mari," Alya said. "See you later, Agreste, assuming you actually show up and on time."

Alya departed, not really paying any mind to Nino's behavior. Marinette shook her head before turning back to Adrien.

"Come on, Adrien," Marinette said, as she took his hand. "We gotta get going."

Adrien's heart soared with joy at the feel of her hand on his. He decided to really play up his bad boy persona and tried something else.

He took a deep breath, and then he brought Marinette's hand up to his lips. He kissed her knuckles before giving her a naughty smile.

Marinette quirked a confused brow. She was a bit surprised and confused at Adrien's gesture, but she was blushing and looking away, unable to meet his eyes.

"What was that?" Marinette asked.

"I… Um… Well…" Adrien began, but once again his voice caught in his throat. "Willyoubethebowtomytie? No! I mean, sugarhoneysweetiepie! DAMNIT! I… Um… Nice weather we're having?"

Adrien immediately slapped his other hand on his mouth. He was completely embarrassed that he once again said something that could not be understood. Marinette gave him furrowed brows, even more confounded by Adrien's behavior.

"Just… Just come on. I don't want YOU getting another tardy. It'll make me look bad." Marinette said, rolling her eyes and walking to class, with Adrien's hand still in hers.

For Adrien, this was something out of a dream. He was holding hands with his crush while walking with her to class. Sure, it was in the context that she was dragging him to class, but Adrien was hoping that one day that this would be in a romantic setting. Maybe a walk in the park or along the Seine in the sunset, holding hands and then the night would end with a romantic dinner at a high-class bistro, giving her the most romantic night in her life.

Now he just had to get the guts to say something coherent to her and tell her how he felt.

* * *

In the classroom…

Nino was roaring in laughter at what Adrien had reported to him. It was entertaining for Nino, but for Adrien, it was embarrassing.

"I can't _believe_ I messed up and said that!" Adrien muttered, slamming his face against the table. "I swear, I have the luck of a black cat when it comes to talking to Marinette! The girl of my dreams…"

"I know the feeling," Nino whispered, patting Adrien's shoulder. "But let's change the subject. Shouldn't we be worried about what our teacher will be assigning us?"

"Yeah. Knowing my father, he'll probably want me to deliberately do a sloppy job. Hopefully I get paired with you for the project." Adrien said.

"Assuming you don't get distracted by a pair of black pigtails and blue eyes sitting in front of you," Nino said teasingly, while gesturing to the girl in front of Adrien. "I swear, in class you pay more attention to Marinette than the teacher."

Adrien shared several classes with Marinette, Alya, and Nino. Nino shared a bench with him, while Alya and Marinette shared the bench in front of them. So, whenever they were working in class, Adrien would be giving romantic gazes to Marinette instead of doing his classwork. Needless to say, this was probably in his favor as far as his dad was concerned.

Once class started, the teacher began to speak.

"Okay, everyone. This week's literature assignment is about Greek Myths," The teacher said, writing up the words on the board. "You will be put in pairs and will decide which myth to do your project about. It can be a presentation, a skit, etc., but it cannot be an oral report, and it has to be thoroughly researched…"

Adrien was mentally praying for one of three things to happen. One: he got paired with Nino. Two: he got paired with Marinette. Three: for Marinette to _not_ be paired with Nathanaël Kurtzberg, their classmate. He was a red-headed artist who also had feelings for Marinette, so Adrien had to watch himself around his rival.

"So, our pairs are the following, and they _will not_ be up for debate. First, Rose and Juleka; Max and Nathanaël; Sabrina and Chloé; Kim and Alix; Nino and Alya; Myléne and Ivan; finally, Marinette and Adrien."

Adrien was celebrating on the inside. He got to work with Marinette, the girl of his dreams. But then his mood did a nosedive when he realized that he had to be able to properly _talk_ to her, and he knew that was impossible at the moment.

Marinette turned to Adrien and gave him a smile that made his heart melt like well-tempered chocolate.

Nino mouthed to Adrien, "Good luck. I know I'll need it."

Nino gave Alya an awkward smile and a blushing face. Alya rolled her eyes with a playful smile on her own lips.

* * *

Later in the library, Adrien was waiting for Marinette. Being the class president, Marinette had some extra duties, so this gave Adrien time to work on a game plan to be able to talk to Marinette without his tongue turning into a square knot.

Adrien had his phone open and he was staring at the picture that became his wallpaper. It was a picture of his most prized possession: a handmade, knit scarf made by Marinette. It was green with black trim and had a black cat paw on the ends. He sighed as he remembered how he gotten the scarf from Marinette in the first place.

 _~Flashback~_

 _It was the end of Adrien's first day of school at Collége Francois-Dupont. Being it was in the middle of winter, Adrien was standing outside the gate, waiting for Nathalie and the gorilla to show up to bring him home. He was standing out in the cold with giant snowflakes pelting him. He had not anticipated snow. Then again, no one did; it came out of nowhere._

 _"Of all the times not to bundle up…" He complained. His luck was as bad as ever._

 _Since the snow came out of nowhere, that meant Adrien had no winter gear on. No boots, gloves, a hat, or even a winter coat. All he was wearing was his motorcycle jacket. The temperatures were dropping and he was colder than the snow outside._

 _"Hi." A voice said, and Adrien turned around. It was the same cute girl from his class, Marinette. Unlike him, she had bundled up, with varying shades of pink and grey in her ensemble. Lucky girl…_

 _She was giving him a pensive facial expression, and Adrien knew better than to question it. His "rebel" image made him intimidating to girls. Add to the fact that he was used as a scapegoat by Chloé and Sabrina earlier that day, he was a little nervous about speaking to Marinette._

 _He had been charmed by her beauty when he first entered the classroom. But it was the way she spoke to him over gum on her seat that left a major impression on him. He was unsure what to think. No girl had even spoken to him the way she did._

 _"Listen… For the record, I know that you weren't the one that put the gum on my seat. Nino told me what happened," Marinette said, surprising Adrien. "And I know that just because you're childhood friends with Chloé doesn't mean you're like her. I'm sorry for being so quick to judge."_

 _Adrien looked her in the eyes and was surprised to hear an apology from her. For some reason, his heart skipped a beat._

 _"I… I should've been quicker to explain what was going on. I guess only having Chloé for a friend made it hard for me to rat her out." Adrien said, turning his face away with a "tough" voice and an aloof expression on his face. But for some reason, his face was also red._

 _Marinette noticed his body was shaking and his face was red. She assumed the red was from the cold. Poor Adrien was probably freezing, so she gave him a sympathetic smile._

 _"Well…" Marinette took her backpack off, opened it up, and took something out._

 _Adrien looked out of his peripheral vision and saw a green scarf with black trim and a black paw print on it. Being in the fashion industry, he knew that scarf would probably clash with Marinette's outfit… Until he saw her coming closer to him._

 _"I can tell you're freezing out here. That, and you strike me as the type of guy to have some sort of connection with cats." Marinette said, putting her backpack back on._

 _Adrien blushed, his eyes went wide, and his mouth got all twisted up in a ridiculous squiggly line. He was completely surprised that Marinette had that detail about him pegged. He actually had a cat, but he never said that out loud._

 _When Marinette started to put the scarf on him, her gloved fingertips brushed against his skin, causing the places she touched to ignite with heat. Adrien's heartbeat kept accelerating and he gazed at Marinette as she wrapped the scarf around his neck. Her breath was warm against Adrien's face. To him, it was more comforting and warm than the fireplace at the mansion._

 _"There you go." Marinette said, as she stepped away._

 _Adrien fiddled with the scarf before turning to Marinette. He gave her a grateful smile with a hint of affection gracing his lips._

 _"Thank you…" Adrien said. "I'll make sure to…"_

 _"Keep it," Marinette said, putting her hand up with a giggle. "I'm planning on becoming a fashion designer someday. So, consider that as a gift, and I hope we can become friends."_

 _Adrien's heart throbbed with an emotion he could not place._

 _"I gotta get going," Marinette said. "Maman and Papa are going to need some help at the bakery. See you tomorrow, Adrien."_

 _She started to leave. Once she left, Adrien's shoulders slacked, his smile grew goofy, and he used his hand to gently place the scarf's wool closer to his heart._

 _"See you tomorrow… My lady." He said, with an infatuated tone._

 _~End of Flashback~_

He had kept that scarf ever since. He never wanted to forget the kindness she had shown him, even after that misunderstanding. She showed a strength of character that he had never seen in anyone. And she was the cutest creature he had ever seen in his life, that he could not help but fall for her.

"Hey, Adrien," Marinette said from behind him. "Sorry I'm late."

Adrien jumped, startled, and then immediately put his phone back to sleep. He did not want Marinette to see the picture. He would have been backed into a corner and then he would have had to own up to his feelings.

"It's… It's fine, Marinette," Adrien said, coherently. "I've been here for a while… Thinking up… What… Project… Topic…"

"Oh, you were thinking about what our topic should be? That's great; I have, too!" Marinette said, as she sat down next to him at the desk. She pulled out a few books that she had found in the library nearby, along with her laptop. She had a few articles bookmarked.

Adrien started looking at one of the books, and his eyes fell onto the tale of Eros and Psyche. He knew the premise of the story: Psyche, a beautiful human princess, was worshiped by her people, and known as more beautiful and beloved than the goddess Aphrodite. As such, her jealousy motivated her to commission her son, Eros, to make her fall in love with a hideous monster. But when he saw her, Eros wound up stabbing himself with his own arrow and fell in love with Psyche herself.

He then remembered that something similar happened with Persephone, the Goddess of Spring, and Hades, the God of the Underworld. Hades had fallen in love with Persephone at first sight, and kidnapped her to be his queen. Over time, Persephone fell for Hades, but after eating some pomegranate seeds, she was bound to the underworld. But her mother, Demeter, had caused all of the plants in the mortal realm to wilt and for snow to cover the ground until Persephone was returned. The compromise they made was that Persephone would stay with Hades for part of the year, the other parts of the year, she would be with her mother.

Adrien let his imagination run wild. He wanted to whisk Marinette away from their school, kiss her senseless, show her how much he adored her… But he knew that he would never be able to get to that stage unless he grew a spine and confessed his love for her.

"Any ideas?" Marinette asked, as she was reading up on the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.

"I… Ha… Pe… Pomegranate… Butterflies…" Adrien stammered, but once again covered his mouth.

He wound up talking about specific details about the myths he chose. Pomegranates were the fruit that Persephone ate while Pysche was associated with butterflies and how she grew a pair of butterfly wings after marrying Eros at the end of her story.

"…Can't decide between the myths of either Hades and Persephone or Eros and Psyche?" Marinette asked.

Adrien nodded profusely. The last thing he wanted was to put his foot in his mouth again.

"Both are pretty romantic stories… As far as the gods go, Eros and Hades were the most faithful husbands," Marinette said, as she looked over the story of Eros and Psyche, getting closer to Adrien. "Either myth would be worthwhile."

Adrien blushed as he stared at Marinette and her beauty. It would be like heaven if he could kiss her.

 _'Damn it… Why is it that I can't get a clear sentence out when I'm around her?'_ Adrien thought, hoping that he could one day communicate his true feelings to her.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Marinette had met up with Alya and they were talking about their respective projects. They were walking home from school, and Alya decided to spend some of the afternoon at Marinette's place.

"So, how is it going with Nino?" Marinette asked.

"I'm surprised he could speak clearly," Alya said with a laugh. "We decided on the myth of Atalanta. What about you and Adrien?"

"…He still stutters around me for some reason." Marinette said, a little depressed.

"How long has it been like that?" Alya asked.

"Since his second day of school back in collége," Marinette said. "It's like he's gotten some sort of speech impediment around me ever since I gave him that scarf. I still see him wear it from time to time. Almost as if it's the most precious thing in the world to him."

Alya grew a mischievous smirk on her face and then teased, "Come on, Marinette. Maybe he likes you."

"Get real, Alya," Marinette said, rolling her eyes. "That's impossible."

Marinette did not necessarily have any shortage of admirers. For example, she had caught Nathanaël sketching her in his comics, and how shy he was around her. But she was never the type to try and flaunt it.

" _You_ should get real, Marinette," Alya said. "He's only like that around _you_. Adrien Agreste, the notorious school rebel, popular model for Gabriel, and richest boy in school, in love with sweetheart Marinette Dupain-Cheng? That's got "opposites attract" written all over it!"

Marinette gave Alya a deadpan look on her face and decided to change the subject.

"So, how's the blog coming along?" Marinette asked.

"Oh, right. I nearly forgot that I just updated the blog," Alya said, pulling it up on her phone. "The team and I just posted a digital flyer about the school talent show. I hope the number of acts goes up."

"I'm sure it will," Marinette said. "But since I have so much work to do, I don't think I'll be able to participate."

"That's fine, girl," Alya said. "Besides, I'm sure plenty of people will sign up."

"I hope so." Marinette said.

Adrien was back in the library. He called up Nathalie earlier to inform her he would be staying behind to work on the project.

"Hey, man," Nino said, as he approached Adrien. "How did you do with Marinette?"

"It could have gone a lot better," Adrien said with a sigh. "We decided on the myth of Eros and Psyche."

"We're doing Atalanta," Nino said. "I'm surprised I could speak clearly."

"How did you do that?" Adrien asked.

"I focused on the project at hand, not the girl I was with," Nino said. "Maybe if you had done that, you would've have some luck."

"Luck is something I _definitely_ need," Adrien said. "I need to find a way to win her over. But how?"

Nino got an alert on his phone, and he looked at it. He said, "Oh, Alya updated the school blog."

"Really?" Adrien asked, pulling up his phone. "Oh, she did."

"Hey, it's about the school talent show!" Nino said. "I'll sign up for it."

"Um, Nino, that's irrelevant," Adrien said, irritated by Nino's change of topic. "I gotta find a way to steal Marinette's heart!"

Nino perked up, and smiled. He said, "Hey, that reminds me of a song. Here."

He put in his headphones and then turned on the song in question. He put the headphones over Adrien's ears and then he started listening to it.

As Adrien listened to the lyrics, he got an idea. He grew a big, mischievous smile on his face, and then he told Nino, "Dude. You're a genius."

Nino's smile fell and then he said, "Adrien, what are you plotting?"

"Where's the sign-up sheet for the talent show?" Adrien said.

Nino immediately knew what Adrien was going to do, and was mentally preparing for the potential disaster that was coming.

"I think it's in Mr. Damocles' office…" Nino said.

"Great! Meet me at my place later this afternoon, Nino," Adrien said, before dashing out of the library. "I have work to do."

Nino face-palmed, trying not to let the impending feeling of a cringe-fest get to him. He muttered, "I'm certain he doesn't mean working on the project…"

* * *

Later that afternoon, Adrien was in the safety of his bedroom, with his black cat, Plagg.

"Hey, Plagg," Adrien said, as he petted the cat on his head. He then put his bike helmet back in his closet. "I'm finally going to do it. I'm going to tell Marinette Dupain-Cheng how much I love her."

He took out the scarf from his closet and gave it a kiss. Oh, how he wished he was kissing Marinette's lips instead.

Adrien turned on his computer and started to get to work. While he was researching the myth of Eros and Psyche, he was also playing the song on his computer, too.

"So… Even Eros wasn't immune to Psyche. That's no surprise, honestly. It's like how Marinette charmed me with just one gesture of kindness." Adrien muttered while looking through the article.

"I see the connection between your project and your love life with that statement." A voice said.

Adrien screamed and shot out of his seat. His shout startled Plagg, causing him to yowl in annoyance. Adrien looked to see Nathalie Sancoeur, his father's assistant.

"N-Nathalie… Um…" Adrien began, before shutting off the music. "How long have you been in here?"

"I just came in. I knocked a few times, but once I heard the music coming from your room, I knew something was amiss," Nathalie began, before sighing and pinching the bridge of her nose. "And judging by your statement, it seems to me your heart has been stolen?"

Adrien blushed and sighed. He knew better than to hide anything from Nathalie.

"According to your music history library on your phone, your taste seems to match that song in terms of genre, but the artist doesn't seem to match anyone in your library. Your primary taste in music is rock, and pop, and your favorite artist is Jagged Stone." Nathalie said.

Adrien hung his head. He said, "Yes. This is a song by Ross Lynch. It's called "Steal Your Heart." I think it's perfect because it fits my image in a way, and at the same time it helps me communicate my true feelings. I plan on singing it during the school talent show."

"Very well, I will adjust the schedule accordingly. But there is one thing I need to know," Nathalie asked, causing Adrien to gulp. "Can you tell me about Mademoiselle Marinette?"

Adrien knew that would be a question. He came out and explained everything, including why he fell in love with her in the first place.

"So your favorite scarf…?" Nathalie said, looking at the scarf that Adrien was holding.

"Yes. It was a gift from her on my second day at collége… I've been in love with her ever since. I just can't get my thoughts and statements together when she's close to me. It's like whenever she talks to me, I'm turned to stone… I'm thinking this song might be a good way to tell her how I feel." Adrien began.

"She treats you like a normal person… Not one of your fans… And if I remember correctly, she won the derby hat competition your father hosted a few years back. Had the spine to expose Ms. Bourgeois' cheating, too." Nathalie said.

"Yes! That's her!" Adrien said, as he took a picture of her from off his desk to show Nathalie.

"Ah, yes, this is the young lady who won," Nathalie said, a small smile gracing her lips. "I must say, you have astounding taste in girls."

Adrien blushed, scratching the back of his neck.

"I will make sure your father hears of your plans to be in the talent show," Nathalie began, as she made to leave the room. "And once you make things official with Ms. Dupain-Cheng, I expect you to invite her to dinner so she can meet your father in person."

Adrien blanched. He only _just_ explained his problem about talking to Marinette, and now Nathalie was expecting him to give his father a proper introduction to her? His luck was only getting worse…

Wait until he told Nino.

* * *

The following break period at school, Adrien and Marinette were hanging back in the classroom, working on the project. Nino and Alya were on the other side of the room, working on their project, too.

"…So, Eros basically falls in love with Psyche after accidentally stabbing himself with one of his own arrows because her beauty distracted him. Talk about getting flustered just by looking at a girl." Marinette said, as she read over the myth.

 _'You have NO IDEA, my lady.'_ Adrien thought, deciding to keep his mouth shut.

However, he could not help himself when talking about Eros and Psyche. He wanted to come out with his true feelings.

"I see a lot of Psyche in you, Marinette." Adrien said, saying something clear and understandable for once. Marinette turned to him, surprised he said something intelligible.

"How so?" Marinette asked, curious.

"Well… you're kind," Adrien began, trying to gather his thoughts. "You're also a good judge of character. It takes more than good looks to sway you. You can look inside a person and see them for who they really are."

Marinette blushed. She had no idea Adrien thought of her like that. She had assumed he disliked her, with the way he could not be able to speak coherently around her. But in that moment, she could see that Adrien was honest.

"You're also very generous," Adrien said. "You're willing to give something that you worked hard on away if it makes someone feel better."

"…I never knew you thought that way about me." Marinette said, smiling at him.

"I always have." Adrien said, placing his hand over hers.

Marinette gave him a playful smile and said, "Does that make you Eros in this situation or something?"

Adrien floundered at that, and he said, "Oh, no, no, no! I… Cupi… Geh… Erk…"

Adrien sighed and gave up. He was on a roll! But being compared to Eros threw him for a complete loop, and now he was back to his bumbling, idiotic self.

Nino had seen the whole thing and was bumping a fist in delight. He was happy Adrien managed to say a few complete sentences without stumbling. Alya looked at the scene and smirked. She knew Adrien had a thing for Marinette.

"Operation Adrienette is…" Alya whispered, but Nino put a hand up to stop Alya and then pretended to slit his throat, telling her to stop right there.

"He already has a plan. Just keep this on the DL." Nino said, blushing profusely.

Alya smiled, nodding and giving Nino a thumb's up to show she understood the situation.

As Marinette stood up to use the bathroom, Adrien immediately took out his earbuds, plugged them into his phone, opened the phone and turned on his song. He wanted to practice while Marinette was out of earshot.

"I think a serenade just might be the ticket to Marinette's heart," Alya said. "The talent show is going to have such a big turnout when the girls find out the school rebel is in the lineup! Best for last, I'll bet."

Alya immediately texted the organizers of the talent show to see if they could put Adrien as the last act.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Nino asked in a whisper.

"Trust me, the girls will be patient enough to stay if they get see him in action." Alya said with a wink.

Nino sighed. He knew better than to argue with Alya.

"I'm back!" Marinette said, as she sat back down. Adrien noticed and immediately put his phone and headset away. "Shall we get back to it?"

Adrien smiled as he nodded profusely. He looked back at the book and saw the pictures of the butterfly wings that Psyche had acquired at the end of the story.

 _'Call me criminal... I'm gonna steal her heart!'_ Adrien thought, hopeful his serenade would work.

Later on, Alya and Marinette were once again at their lockers, talking shop about their projects.

"So, girl…" Alya began. "You may not be participating, but are you going to come to the talent show?"

"I'm planning on making it," Marinette said, wanting to be there to support her friends. "I want to be able to see everyone on stage. Nino's a DJ, so he'll be performing, Rose and Juleka are going to be doing their own song and dance number, and Alix will be doing a rhythmic gymnastics routine."

Alya smiled. She remembered that she was sworn to secrecy about Adrien's performance, so she merely snickered under her breath.

Marinette noticed and said, "Alya, is there something you're not telling me?"

"You'll see once the show goes on." Alya said with a knowing smile.

Marinette grew suspicious. Something was off, and Marinette was almost certain that she was the one it was concerning.

"Okay…" Marinette said, a little nervous about what would happen.

She knew that the talent show was involved, but at the same time, she had valid reason to believe that Marinette would somehow or another get dragged into it. The question was, how and why.

* * *

A few days passed and the talent show as soon upon the school. Alya pulled some strings and she and Marinette got front-row seats to the show. Alya wanted to be sure that Marinette was front and center to Adrien's serenade. Speaking of the blonde…

Backstage in the greenroom, Adrien was putting the finishing touches onto his "look" for his act.

"Come on… Okay, is my hair sticking out _just right_? How are my clothes? Does my cologne smell okay?" Adrien asked, frantic.

"Dude, you're fine," Nino said, as he was getting his mixtape ready. "Besides, I honestly doubt Marinette would object to the scent of lavender and vanilla bean. Better than the non-existent stink of tobacco."

Adrien turned around. He was wearing his biker gear – or rather, just the biker jacket – his hair was messy, and had put on a spritz of gender-neutral cologne that had scents that Marinette was known to like. Being the daughter of bakers, he was sure Marinette had gone nose-blind to vanilla bean, but he wanted to make sure he had all of his bases covered.

"Come on, Nino, you've finally gotten Alya's attention, but I'm still in a rut!" Adrien said. "I just hope I don't blow it tonight."

"You'll be _fine_ , Adrien," Nino insisted, doing some last-minute work on his act. "Just be glad you're last in the line-up so you can practice in the back before you go on. Alya made sure that she and Marinette got front-row seats."

"She'll see my performance!" Adrien said, trying not to squeal like a little kid.

Nino sighed and shook his head. His best friend was hopelessly in love.

Back out in the audience, Marinette was certain that Alya had something up her sleeve. The question was, what was it. But the other thing that was confusing her was Adrien.

Marinette had seen a new side to Adrien ever since he became her partner for their project.

Ever since she gave him that scarf, it was like he became a complete, clumsy idiot around her. She found it a little strange, but she knew he had no problem talking to girls, if all of the brush-offs he gave his fans were any clue. But the odd thing was, whenever Adrien would talk to _her_ , he became a complete mess. She had no idea what was going on through his head.

But once the two of them were partners for their project, it was as if Adrien had gotten his bravado and mojo back. Even the connections he made between Psyche and her were spoken coherently. It was if he was talking to one of his fans.

Marinette admitted that she found this pretty charming, and was wondering where this Adrien had been the whole time, and she secretly hoped that she could continue seeing this. She liked it.

Adrien was waiting backstage for his cue while Nino was doing his DJ thing on the stage, and then Rose and Juleka were up next. They were planning on singing a duet.

"Keep it together, man," Adrien said, as he took something out of his pocket: the scarf. "Once you're done singing, tell her to meet you back here in the greenroom, confess your feelings, and then hopefully you'll get the girl…"

"Adrien," Rose said. "You're up after Juleka and I. Break a leg."

"Thanks. You too." Adrien said, as he was trying to calm himself.

A few minutes later…

"And that's Rose Lavillant and Juleka Couffaine with Celine Dion and Barbara Streisand's duet "Tell Him!" Give the girls some love, peeps!" Kim said, as everyone in the audience started applauding for the two girls.

Kim had been asked to play emcee for the talent show, and he was playing his part very well.

"And our final act of the night… Ladies, show _EVERY BIT OF LOVE YOU HAVE_ for… _**Adrien Agreste**_ , singing "Steal Your Heart" by Ross Lynch!" Kim announced.

All of the girls were cheering and squealing at the top of their lungs while the boys were booing just as much.

Marinette covered her ears to filter out the volume, but then she felt her phone buzz. She opened it up and saw a text from Adrien. It read: "Pay attention. This is for you."

Marinette quirked a brow. She had no idea what was coming, but paid it no mind. Alya saw the message and snickered again. She knew what was about to happen.

Adrien came out on stage, and was soon met with the cheers and boos from the crowd. He looked over the audience and soon made eye contact with Marinette. He smiled and took up the microphone.

 _"You like the good boys, so I'm not invited to the plans you make when you're with your friends."_ Adrien sang, as his mind rewound to the moments Marinette would be spending time with Nathanaël, working on sketches, or playing Ultimate Mecha Strike with Max Kante.

 _"But you know bad boys, you can't deny it. They can always show you where the fun begins!"_ Adrien sang, as he held his hand out to Marinette. She took it, and then Adrien pulled her up onto the stage before releasing her hand. The crowd went wild.

 _"Hey now, baby! No doubt about it girl, you drive me crazy!"_ Adrien sang, while keeping eye contact with Marinette and twirling his finger above his head to signal "crazy."

 _"I'm pleading guilty to the way you make me want to steal your heart! Steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang, as he essentially admitted that he wanted Marinette's heart for himself.

 _"Call me criminal. I won't deny you make me want it all. Everything you are! So lock it up! Go on and try it! No matter what you do I'm gonna steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang, as he did some break dance moves, such as spinning on the balls of his feet, then gently gave Marinette a wink. Her face burned like a ruby, and Adrien's confidence grew.

 _"I confess. I kinda like it that you're innocent, keeping up your guard! I'll break it down, so you can't hide it! No matter what you do I'm gonna steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang, while basically insinuating that Marinette's heart was a precious gem.

She managed to understand that part of the song, and her heart pounded when she realized this.

 _"You're a good girl. The perfect picture of an angel smile from a magazine."_ Adrien sang, holding up a magazine with a female model and her smile on it, before tossing it aside.

 _"But it's a new world, and I know so well, the side of you no one's ever seen!"_ Adrien sang, while remembering the times he had seen Marinette's quick and creative thinking, her artistry with her clothes, her kindness, everything.

 _"Hey now, baby! No doubt about it girl, you drive me crazy! I'm pleading guilty to the way you make me want to steal your heart! Steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang.

 _"Call me criminal!"_ Adrien sang, getting down on his knees and holding up his hands in balled fists, as if cuing Marinette to arrest him, before standing back up again. _"I won't deny you make me want it all, everything you are! So lock it up! Go on and try it! No matter what you do, I'm gonna steal your heart!"_

 _"I confess, I kinda like it that you're innocent, keeping up your guard!"_ Adrien sang, while taking Marinette's hand and doing an underarm turn with her, before pulling her closer, before lifting her chin with his fingers. _"I'll break it down, so you can't hide it! No matter what you do, I'm gonna steal your heart!"_

Marinette was surprised. Adrien felt this way? He had _feelings_ for _her_? She had no idea.

 _"You've gotta keep it, just like a secret. Baby believe me, you've gotta free it, and you'll have everything you need."_ Adrien sang, before letting Marinette out of his embrace.

 _"You like the good boys, so I'm not invited to the plans you make when you're with your friends, but you know bad boys… You can't deny it. They can always show you where the fun begins."_ Adrien sang, looking Marinette in the eyes.

 _"Call me criminal! I won't deny you make me want it all! Everything you are! So lock it up! Go on and try it! No matter what you do, I'm gonna steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang, as he kept Marinette's eyes on him.

 _"I confess, I kinda like it that you're innocent, keeping up your guard! I'll break it down, so you can't hide it! No matter what you do, I'm gonna steal your heart!"_ Adrien sang, before blowing Marinette a two-fingered air kiss.

Marinette was floored. The entire auditorium roared with cheers. While everyone was cheering and going insane over the performance, Adrien mouthed to Marinette, "Meet me in the greenroom. I have to talk to you."

Adrien went offstage to the right, while Marinette still stood there in shock. She shook it off and then she ran after Adrien.

* * *

Once she entered the greenroom, she took a deep breath. She wondered what Adrien had to say to her. Sure, the message from the song was pretty clear, but she would rather hear it from the horse's mouth, so to speak.

She caught Adrien sitting in a chair, twiddling his thumbs. As soon as he looked up and made eye contact with Marinette, he stood up and gave her a smile.

"Hey, Marinette," Adrien said, finally getting his nerve, speaking coherently, talking to his crush, no barriers. "So… what did you think?"

"That was amazing…" Marinette said. "I didn't know you could sing like that."

"I've been practicing," Adrien said with a smirk and shrug. "More importantly, did you understand my message?"

"…You… like… me." Marinette said, trying to string the words.

"Not just like, my lady," Adrien said, as he sauntered over to her. Once he got close enough, their bodies were nearly pressing against each other, and she was looking up at him to maintain eye contact. He stared into her eyes, too. "Rather… I adore you."

Marinette blushed, not expecting to hear Adrien say something like that.

"But… up until now you couldn't keep a conversation with me without babbling." Marinette said.

"What can I say? I'm the type of guy who's a bit nervous and shy around the girl he likes," Adrien said, shaking his head. "Especially the one I've loved for so many years."

"Wait, what?" Marinette asked. She had no idea he felt that way about her for such a long time.

Adrien smiled and took out the scarf she gave him all that time ago. Her eyes widened as she examined it.

"You may not remember… But I couldn't forget, ever," Adrien said. "Ever since you gave me this scarf, I… I've been in love with you."

Marinette looked up into Adrien's eyes and gazed at his emerald orbs, as they bore into her ocean blue ones.

"…I can't believe this… I just wanted to make amends for that misunderstanding all those years ago." Marinette said.

"You did so much more than that, Marinette," Adrien said, as he gently took Marinette's hand into his own. He interlaced their fingers, and then he raised their hands to his lips. He gave the back of her hand a light kiss. "You probably didn't mean to, but you stole my heart… Now I want yours."

Marinette's heart fluttered with joy, before giving him a coy smile. She said, "You're cute when you're not a stammering mess."

Adrien blushed and then he tripped on his words again for a second. He said, "And you're beautiful when you're not being a tease, my lady."

"You're calling me, "my lady?" That's a new one." Marinette said with a giggle.

"You… You've always been that to me," Adrien said. "I wasn't joking when I compared you to Psyche."

"No wonder we aced that project." Marinette said with a slight scoff of surprise.

However, her phone went off, and she got a text alert from Alya. Marinette read it, "Alya's saying… "Hope you're making out with the delinquent in there." That Alya…! She knew this was going to happen!"

"Yeah, knowing Nino, he probably let her in on the secret. I'm just glad those two are finally making progress, too." Adrien chuckled.

"Wait, Nino and Alya…?" Marinette began, before cluing in. "No wonder Nino acted the same as you did around Alya until a few weeks ago."

"Guess a Greek mythology project is the perfect icebreaker," Adrien said. "And speaking of ice… I could use some ice cream. My throat's feeling a bit sore from all of that singing."

"There's probably some in the freezer back home in the bakery," Marinette said. "Maybe we could…?"

"So, you want our first date at your parents' bakery?" Adrien said with a smirk. "Sounds good to me!"

Adrien hugged Marinette close to him, before planting a kiss onto her adorable cheek. Marinette giggled and nuzzled her face against his chest in response.

But then he remembered something.

"Actually, Marinette… Once we've had a few dates… Think you would mind having dinner at my place one night? Nathalie's insisting that you meet my father for dinner at one point." Adrien awkwardly admitted.

Marinette gawked in surprise. Adrien could not help himself, and then he once again planted a kiss on Marinette's cheek.

"Looks like I've done it… I've finally stolen your heart." Adrien said, hugging Marinette closer to him.

* * *

 **And that's all she wrote! I hope you enjoyed this one-shot. I wasn't sure what I was really thinking with this one. I guess since I've seen so many "Bad Boy Adrien" stories, I thought I'd give it a try, too, downplaying a few parts.**


End file.
